Cayman Islands National Archive

Our first article in this series featured the Arch’s Shipyard located off Harbour Drive (now Seafarers Way). In the early 1900s, a walk along the seafront from this shipyard, towards Dixie Cemetery would have taken you through George Town’s business district, with its several landmarks. There was the old Court House (including Government offices and the jail -- now the Cayman Islands National Museum), an array of shops, two churches, a school, the Turtle Market, sundial, seawall, Government warehouse, and Fort George. Scattered along the picturesque, narrow, unpaved road were private homes of varying styles, sizes and designs. Opposite the Court House was the Government Dock with its small boat (also interestingly called the ‘quarantine boat’) that carried Customs and Immigration officials out to inspect incoming and outgoing vessels, cargo and passengers. 

Early written records describe small dugout canoes lying on the sand in the little bays that dotted the shore. There were also careening places (areas along the shore where boats were tipped on their sides for scraping/cleaning), ships under construction and sail lofts (shed like structures attached to or beside houses where sails were cut and made), all testament to the thriving shipbuilding industry of that day. Venturing further north along North Church Street, you would leave the business/commercial area behind and enter more residential neighbourhoods with homes belonging to businessmen, shipwrights, sailmakers, fishermen, etc.  One of the best-known shipbuilders up north of town was Mr. James Roland Bodden, whose shipyard was next to his family home (located on the right side of the lane where Popo Jeb’s restaurant is today, across from Burger King on the waterfront).  Like other shipbuilding families, the skills of the trade were passed down from one generation to the next in the Bodden family. Similar to the Arch men, as the shipbuilding era drew to a close, the Bodden men went on to become distinguished builders of buildings in Grand Cayman. In fact, Rayal Brazley, affectionately known as ‘Captain Rayal’, the older son is credited with moving Cayman from the age of building in wood to building with cement (a topic for a future post).

However, it was about his shipbuilding years, working alongside his father and younger brother Roland and many others like them, that Captain Rayal spoke most fondly, in several 1970’s Nor’wester Magazine articles when he was interviewed in his 80s. From these and other sources, we share some details of the Bodden family genealogy, Capt. Rayal’s thoughts about local shipbuilding and names of most of the ships built by this family. 

Family Background – The oldest record of the paternal Bodden line dates back as early as the mid to late 1700s.  From birth and death records we learn that their great-great grandfather was a John Bodden ‘born in about’ 1760 and who died in 1809. Occupations of the males in their family tree were listed mainly as: mariner, fisherman, master of vessels, ships’ owner or shipbuilder. Rayal Brazley and Roland Archibald were the grandsons of John Clarke Bodden (b.1834, d.1891) and sons of James Roland Bodden (b.1858, d.1940). Their mother was Elizabeth ‘Liza’ Caroline Bodden and she and James Roland had five children: three daughters (Gerda Annetta (b, 1884), Blanche Lee, who became Mrs. Roddy Watler,(b.1890), and Mirindy Delma (as per birth certificate) OR Mirendy Delma(as per father’s will in Public Recorders Registry) (b. 1893) and two sons (Rayal b.1885, d.1976 and Roland b.1888, d.1968).  

Image: Lady Slater under construction c.1932. Courtesy: Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Library System. NOT TO BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE CAYMAN ISLANDS NATIONAL ARCHIVE.